Mandalorian's Mind
by SpartanCommando
Summary: A young expelled former Jedi finds solace in the Mandalorian ways. Years later he is forced into a situation not of his own choice, learning the ways of the order that banished him from one of its most revered, hated, and tragic heroes of old.
1. Chapter 1

_**prologue **_

Footsteps began to echo within the tombs walls. The recently discovered tomb of the former Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Revan once more had visitors. Since its discovery by a team of Sith explorers many others ventured into its inner sanctum. The footsteps belonged to the most recent pair of explorers, accompanied by a humming sound.

"I am curious Solrac, why did you bring me here?" asked a female voice calmly.

"You mean I need a reason to see my mother for the first time in six years?" asked a noticeably younger male voice, feigned hurt added to it. The female's voice giggled at the young ones response.

"Yes! Not that I'm not glad to see you, its just that well. . . . Its so sudden and unexpected. Mother?" This time it was the young man's turn to laugh, albeit this time one of barely contained nervousness.

"Yeah well, um how to explain this," Solrac said slowly before taking a deep breath, "I adopted you as my mother." Silence was the unexpected response to his statement. The teenager closed his eyes tightly, cursing himself for his lack of control. He should have known it would be awkward if he told her that.

". . . . Adopted?" came the slow and somewhat shocked voice. They stopped suddenly at a sealed durasteel door. The door suddenly, and not by its own control, opened revealing a very unusual sight. An adult pale skinned and red haired, woman who stood half a head taller than her companion, took the first step past the now open space. She wore only simple orange and brown robes over scratched combat armor, a pair of combat boots, and a hooded cloak over the plain robes. The most impressive thing about this woman was the weapon she carried. A green hued lightsaber was being held as a source of light in her right hand.

The figure to her left was seemingly worth a greater amount of attention however. The mostly green armor hid the body beneath it. The armor had two orange stripes traveling in a lighting pattern from his collar bone to the top of each leg. A orange painted Mythosaur skull finished the decorative additions to the otherwise traditional Mandalorian armor.

Two pairs of Mandalorian blaster pistols rested on his belt, a vibrosword strapped to his back. A short khaki colored cloak clung to a right shoulder pauldron, and draped over the male's arm. His left arm was bent at the elbow, the forearm pinning a T-visored helmet to his side. Armored boots pounded the tomb floor. His right hand was nervously rubbing the uncovered back of his neck, while his youthful face smiled innocently at the woman. The teenager's green eyes met a similarly colored pair as he looked up slightly.

"You see, ahh. Well let me start at the beginning mo- I mean master, I mean-" the fifteen year old was hushed by the woman's empty left hand being raised.

"Solrac, you don't have to call me master." The woman had a sad smile on her face as she continued to look down at the teenager in question. "Though if I had my way, you would. You do know that don't you?"

"Of course." the youth answered, his right hand lowered till it rested on his hip. The brown haired boy grinned boyishly up at the older woman. "It wasn't your fault the Council did not want me to stay in the Order."

"I know, Force I know." Satele Shan shook her head side to side. Solrac had been her apprentice once several years ago. Her first student, and one of her most treasured people in the galaxy, had only been with her for a little over a year before being expelled from the order. "To this day the Council's decision still surprises. I _knew_ you were a Mandalorian child when I brought you to Tython. I _knew_ that you had great potential, and that your heritage in no way could say otherwise. In this time when all able bodied Jedi are needed they decide to throw out one so powerful in the Force, its simply maddening. Forgive the rant by the way Solrac. I thought I had outgrown such actions years ago."

"No apology is necessary master." Solrac reassured his former teacher. "Anyway, back to the whole adoption thing. Well you know how I decided to go to Mandalore after I was kicked out of the Order?"

"Of course," Satele answered as she looked turned her head forward. "You should have heard some of the older Knights. 'See? I told you that mando boy was loyal to his _kind_', 'Ah, I knew he would never be a Jedi', 'What was Shan thinking bringing one of _them_ here?' Utter madness," at the questioning look from her former pupil the Jedi Master found her mistake, "Not you going to Mandalore mind you, just what those old fools said."

"Old? Master, they're not much older than you!" Solrac said chuckling. His laughter was quickly silenced when he caught himself as he began to trip. "Hey!"

"Hm? Oh Solrac, you should really watch your step."

"Watch my- no! I know you did that!"

"Did what?" Satele only asked, mischief gleaming for an instant in her older green eyes.

"Fine, be that way." Solrac told her as he still held his pointed right index finger in her direction. Lowering his hand once more, the teenager continued. "As I was saying, before being Force TRIPPED," he continued, emphasizing the last word, "On Mandalore blood doesn't matter. Mandalore is the chance for people to have a new life, a second chance in their lives. Family is who cares for you and protects you. Master Shan, you found me on a border world living alone in my father's transport that I stowed away on. You kept me safe while there were still pockets of skirmishes going all around that planet. You gave me a home, no matter how short it was such. You're the only person I have ever had that was remotely like a mother. So I adopted you as my legal mother. Beautiful thing about Mandalore, you don't need paper work to make someone family. Just the right words in _Mando'a._"

"So in the Mandalorian World, we're a family?" asked Satele. Her birth mother had been a normal woman who had died in childbirth, her father was a Jedi padawan who had died during the opening months of the Great War. Satele had never had a family before, the idea of having a son was a pleasant unexpected surprise.

"In all but blood Master Shan."

"I admit that the idea of having a son is something I wouldn't mind. But, I still would like some time to actually think about this." she told the fifteen year old gently.

"Oh. Well, guess I should have expected that huh?" Solrac said slowly after sighing briefly. In all reality, he told himself, this was one of the possibilities though it still hurts a bit. Sensing her former student's downtrodden mood the Jedi decided to turn the conversation in a different direction. And perhaps embarrass him as well, she mused to herself.

"Is there a girl in the picture yet Solrac?" The thirty year old master smirked as she felt his shock in the Force. Which was quickly followed by a rapidly reddening face gaping at her before whipping down, eyes locking on the floor. Satele giggled at Solrac's reaction.

"When did you start being so blunt Master?" Solrac grumbled quietly, his eyes never leaving the floor and a blush still on his cheeks.

"Only with you my dear young man, only with you," she told him voice filled with warm mirth, "You still haven't answered me yet I notice. Now let me ask again, _is _there a girl?" Solrac's jaw clenched as his eyes darted left and right, obviously trying to decide whether or not to answer. With a resigned sigh, he mumbled something. "I didn't quite catch that Solrac."

"I said yes!" the boy all but shouted at her before the blush quickly returned. Smirking Satele decided to press on the confession.

"Will you tell me about her?" she asked him.

"How do you do that? Practically order me to do something, but make it sound like it's a question?" he told her, attempting to stall the conversation. Unfortunately, Satele was an expert diplomat and quickly caught on to his indiscrete attempts.

"I'll answer yours if you tell me about the girl. Deal?"

"Fine Master," Solrac threw his only free hand up in exasperation. "Her name is Jatne of Clan Gev, one of the smaller Mandoade clans."

"Please go on Solrac." said his former master, her interest steadily growing.

"She is, well she's. . . . Unreal. That's the only possible way to describe her. Jatne is without a doubt the most beautiful woman I have ever met, sh-"

"Woman? She's older than you?" asked Satele. Solrac was barely out of boy hood himself. The fact that he may actually desire a woman several years older than him greatly surprised the Jedi Master.

"Well yeah actually. But really its not much of a problem. I mean three weeks?" he snorted. "That's barely anything to look at Master."

"Then why do you refer to a teenage girl as a child?"

"Uh, because she's _not_ a child? In the Mandalorian culture all youths enter adulthood at the age of thirteen. Provided that they pass a specific trial of course." he said this in a way that made the pride evident. "Ours just happened to be the same kind though. That's how we first met. We had to hunt and kill two Shriek-Hawks using nothing but a bow and arrow each. No armor, and no additional devices. Or the Force in my case."

"And a shriek-hawk is?" Satele asked while moving her left hand in circles.

"The largest thing in the skies of Mandalore. Lets just say they make even armored Mandalorian watch their backs when entering one of their territories. You should have seen her master, she moved as fast and gracefully as any Jedi could. Not only did she kill her shriek-hawk, she also found one of their eggs unhatched. I don't know how they do it but it is possible to raise a tamed shriek-hawk to be a Mandalorian's hunting companion."

"Uh-huh. Anything else besides what she can do? I don't think any teenage boy-"

"Man! I completed my own _Verd'goten _as well you know!" Solrac interrupted her, annoyed by lack of recognition as a man.

"Fine. I don't think any teenage _man_," she repeated this time using the correct word, "Just focuses on just what a girl is capable of."

"She has onyx colored eyes. But there different from other peoples. Hers are more like the night just before dawn. They practically tell you that she will always find a way to see that morning sun," Solrac paused for a moment, a smile and dreamy eyed look appearing on his face. "She doesn't look like a fighter actually. If anything, outside her armor she looks more like a dancer. But if you told her that face to face. . . I'm just going to say I learned what areas are the most necessary for a guy to cover with armor."

"So, you got beat up. Well you win some, you lose some." Satele said after chuckling at Solrac's expense. The conversation soon had them both informing the other of the changes in each of their lives. Mainly Satele being considered to become the order's Grand Master, and her taking of a new padwan. Despite the slight pain at being reminded he could never be a Jedi Solrac congratulated Satele, and silently envied her second apprentice.

Eventually they found themselves in a large chamber. The Force was easily detectable in the very air around them. Strangely the power seemed to come back to the that part of the tomb. The rest of their exploration had required Satele to keep her blade activated at all times. After several seconds of confusion the pair shared a look. Satele shrugged and moved to search the chamber. The Mandalorian walked in the other direction, finally placing the symbol of the Mandalorian Warriors over his head.

Solrac stretched outwards with the Force. This room. . . . It felt like he was _meant _to be here. But at the same time he could sense something faint in the Force, something that felt alive. It was a faint source of something familiar; one that would disappear from his senses one moment, only to reappear two or three heartbeats later. The young Mandalorian man felt like he was being called.

Satele walked slowly towards what looked like a computer terminal. This entire area of the tomb seemed to have power, so why not the terminal? If it had power that meant it could be hacked which meant that she could learn more about Revan. Perhaps even a forgotten secret of the Sith, or even the location of planets known only to those who wielded the darkness. The Jedi Master was unaware of the strange disturbance in the Force.

The Force would always have a will of its own. The control over it that the Jedi and their Sith counter-parts was not that at all. In reality it was more like a request to the unfathomable will of the Force. Merely those who had the strength to wield the Force had an infinitely higher connection than all others, and it was that connection that made it almost certain for the Force to agree to their own wills.

The young Mandalorian came to the pedestal in the center of the chamber. He was facing the back of it, unable to see what he somehow knew rested upon it. Solrac's instincts screamed at him to stay away from the pedestal, to allow his potential mother do investigate it. Regretfully the pull he was feeling from the Force proved greater, and he slowly walked to stand in front of the pedestal.

Solrac stared open-mouthed at what he had found. It was an ancient Mandalorian mask, black with a red trimmed T-visor. The young man reached out with Force sensing an long since gone impression. He felt a large amount of power, greater than his old Master's own. And it felt vaguely familiar.

"Master! Come quick, I found something you will want to see." he shouted, his voice coming out louder thanks to the amplification of his helmet.

"What is it?" Satele asked her former pupil. She was in the midst of brining life back to the centuries old piece of technology. It was surprisingly easy to her, almost as though the terminal was meant to activate when it came in contact with her prescience.

"A mask! I can feel traces of a powerful Force-Sensitive Master." That sent a fresh wave of surprise to the Master level Jedi. A mask that still held a connection to one gifted in the Force? There was only one man that came to mind who had the power to leave such a long lasting echo. Revan himself. Spinning quickly Satele began to quickly walk towards the armored man.

"Don't touch anything! If I'm right about who it belonged to, then it may be a trap Solrac." The Master watched in frustration as the Mandalorian man moved his hand toward something on the pedestal. Likely the mask. Gritting her teeth, Satele reached for her lightsaber ready to deal with any possible traps left behind by the long dead Prodigal Knight.

As his gloved fingers lightly touched the mask a mechanism was activated. Startled he quickly took two steps back and watched. The mask rose several inches above its resting place, revealing an emerald green and golden medallion. Unconsciously Solrac's hand instantly launched itself towards the strange artifact, quickly bringing it up to his face.

Gripping the chain he allowed the disk shaped medallion to twist slightly. On one side was the same image used by the Mandalorians under Mandalore the Preserver. The other was a pair of ignited lightsabers crossed over diagonally over the symbol of the Republic.

_**At last. You have come. **_

Once more startled, Solrac tossed the medallion up in the air. To his shock it merely levitated directly before him. He began to hear the voice speaking within his mind again.

_**Do not fear this. This is as much your destiny, as it was my own. The Republic fall, and in its place an Empire will rule the Galaxy for over ten thousand years should you not accept this. I will not lie to you; it requires you to sacrifice any hope for a life with those you know. It will require you to suffer trials greater than anything a normal man should have to bear. But you. . . . For you that is the legacy she left behind for you. She was the first of your family to hold such burdens. Now it is your duty Mandalorian. Embrace it. **_

The voice was calm and controlled. Yet it was as reassuring as Master Shan's had ever been to him. And just like her, the voice was something that made a man believe it. As he slowly reached up to once more grasp the medallion he saw images. He saw a woman several years older than his former master. Yet she was very familiar to him, and he knew exactly why. She looked nearly identical to what little he remembered of his mother's image.

He was barely aware of the shouting as a massive rush of power flooded his veins. It was followed by a blinding pain within his head, pain he had never thought possible. As though his very mind was being stripped bare and then placed back together. As his mind shut itself down and placed his body in a catatonic state, he never released his hold on the medallion.

Satele felt a portion of the pain being experienced by her one time student. It was enough to momentarily paralyze the powerful Master. She was unable to move even as the green armored Mandalorina fell to the ground without uttering a sound.

Her eyes widened as fear all but consumed her mind. She was only aware of three things. The pain Solrac had felt was gone. The second was that he was not moving. The third was that his presence in the Force had diminished to a level that was only possible with death. Forcing all the power of the Force into her speed, the Jedi towards the downed figure.

'Solrac!' she thought fearfully, 'Please, you must not let go!'

It was only due to instincts honed by decades of training that her body avoided a blaster bolt. Rolling to her right the Jedi Master raised her now ignited green blade held in a defensive posture. Out of the shadows an orange plated droid came out, a sniper rifle held aimed at her.

"Statement: Do not move Meatbag." It said in the precise tone that the HK series protocol droids used. Her eyes narrowed slightly. This was no protocol droid, and it was keeping her away from Solrac. If anything it reminded her of the Sith droid SP-99.

"Do you know what happened to him?" Satele asked through clenched teeth, gesturing with her weapon at the downed Mandalorian. "Tell me and you can leave droid."

"Answer: My Master's plan Meatbag. That is what happened to the Mandalorian."

"Are you a servant of the Sith?"

"Insulted Exclamation: As if I would be caught working for such a pathetic group of meat bags! I am following the orders given to me by my Master and Mistress. Query: You appear somewhat similar to my Master's mate. Are you a descendant of Jedi Master Bastila Shan?" the droids red-glowing photo receptors dimmed lightly as it appeared to examine her.

"Yes." Satele said slowly. If what this droid was saying wasn't a lie, then that meant one of her ancestors had planned this. Planned whatever had happened to Solrac. "Explain yourself. Now."

"Surprised response: It seems that one of my subsystem functions has activated itself. Exasperated action" the droid actually sighed and then turned its head sideways several times. "Statement: It seems that I have been programmed to answer all questions you may have. _After_, we place the Mandalorian the now activated stasis pod."

* * *

_To my descendent. _

_Yes. It is true you are of my blood, by the Force I cannot imagine how you will react to that. But do remember that you are not just my heir, you are also Her descendent as well. Still it must be quite the shock to you, a Jedi Knight discovering that she is in fact the descendent of the Bane of the Mandalorians, as well as the Prodigal Knight. I do not know whether or not the perception of my name has changed or not at the time you have been given this data pad. Still you cannot change who you are, the great-something grand daughter of Revan. _

_Humph. Yes I am fully aware that the last statement may seem to contradict the seriousness of this message. But allow me to inform you about a little known fact: I did believe it or not have a sense of humor. If it's a sick sense, perverted, or merely confusing. . . . Well that's something my companions each decided for themselves. _

_By the Force! When did I start turning into Jolee? At the time this has been recorded I am only thirty seven galactic standard years old. Damn you old man, how is it even in death you still have a hand in how I live my life? _

_I feel a need to give you a short summary of why what you have witnessed transpired on this day. First however I assure you that he is safe and will not die, if your anything like Bastila is you are probably worrying yourself a step closer to grey hairs. His fate of now will also be explained to you. _

_One year after the end of the Jedi Civil War I began to. . . . . Remember parts of my time as Dark Lord of the Sith. After the battle of Malachor V I did originally intend to pursue the remnants of the Mandalorian fleet. That was not my only goal however, nor was it Alec's. I refer to my late apprentice as such because at the time he _still_ was that man. _

_I had discovered the Trayus Academy, an ancient and long forgotten Sith Academy on the taboo world. This was the start of my path towards Dark Lord, and yet in the end it may have saved your generation. I learned after spending several days searching the Academy's archives of the True Sith. The last of the Original Sith Empire, and the fact that they still existed in the unknown regions. _

_After defeating the Mandalorians Alec and myself came to a decision. The True Sith had orchestrated the entire Mandalorian Wars, and that they were the unseen threat our masters had warned us about when we first left for war. We knew then that the it was our duty as Jedi Knights to prevent the Sith from attacking the Republic. And so we took our fleet and searched for our true foe. _

_It took several months but finally we came to the world of Dromund Kaas, the capital of these True Sith. It was there where Alec and myself infiltrated the capital city, it was there where we fell into a trap, and it was there where we met Him. The Sith Emperor. Do not be surprised my child, the Sith Emperor has lived for millennia prolonging his life through forgotten Sith Alchemy. _

_Knowing that we would not escape his grasp the two of us launched our attack against him. We failed to sense his true power however. Should you come face to face with the Emperor my dear be wary; he knows of a way to distort your ability to detect his full strength. Alec was the greatest lightsaber duelist of our time, and I was the Order's most powerful in the Force. _

_The Emperor had us at his mercy in exactly seventy-nine seconds. _

_Never have I come across such power, sheer unfathomable power or comprehendible power. I have seen many things in my life up to now, and even now I never came across anything that inspired such fear in my heart. I knew at the moment, when his guards dragged myself and Alec across his throne room, that the Republic as it was stood no hope for survival. Through our bond the pair of us were certain what would be the fate of the galaxy. _

_The Sith would return to the galaxy, in a show of might and splendor unseen since the Great Hyperspace War 1,000 years prior. The Emperor would have his revenge on the Republic that humiliated the Sith Species so long ago. The Order would fight till they found themselves with their backs to the Council Chambers. And then both would die to be replaced by the Sith Emperor and his people. _

_As we lay at his feet, waiting for our death, the Emperor spoke for the first time and yet he did not. He forced himself into our minds not slowed by our strongest attempts at keeping him out. The Emperor tortured us within the confines of our minds for days. I remember clearly his twisted, hellish world, he created within my mind. For a full year he tortured me in a thousand different way, each more painful and evil than the last. In the span of a mere hour he had tortured Alec and myself for a year in our minds. He broke us to his will. _

_There is no being more evil alive today than the Emperor. He is the Darkness given flesh, he is the living personification of everything the Order has taught the Darkside of the Force is. It was then that he gave us his orders: to prepare the galaxy for his invasion of Sith. And like a newly build droid, we obeyed without question. _

_The rest is history now. We took up the mantles of Darth Revan and Darth Malak, found the Star Forge, and began our own conquest of the galaxy. I came to my wits days after leaving the Emperor's company, and knew Republic needed to be ready. It was with that knowledge that I devised plans that would bring an end to the Republic and Jedi Order, and leave the industry intact to prepare our defense. You know exactly how that turned out though don't you? Yes. You most certainly do. _

_Eventually I did leave known space once again. I needed to find a way to stall the Emperors plans. I had become twice as powerful as I was when we first crossed paths, but I knew he was still the greater power of us. The most I could possibly do was to buy years for the Republic to prepare. _

_Considering that you are reading this, its fairly obvious to you that I succeeded. Though I did not do this alone, no I could have never done it without her. My last surviving friend from my childhood. Mirta Storia, better known as the Jedi Exile. Five years after I had disappeared the remnants of my Empire banded together in an attempt to finally eradicate the last of the Jedi and destroy the Republic. _

_These were the last of my teachings to fade away into the cold darkness. The last of many radical contingency plans against an early invasion by the True Sith. I would like history to remember this: the Jedi are not needed to stop the dangers of the dark side. So long as life exists all sentient beings do battle with the Light, or the Dark as their allies. All it ever takes to battle the darkness is a compassionate soul. A being who is willing to place the lives of others before their own. Anyone can stop the Darkside, but they do not need to follow the path of a Jedi. I myself do not consider myself a traditional Knight, I like to consider myself more of a Grey Jedi instead. _

_I make this data pad two years after my return to the galaxy. I am tired of the constant battle between Light and Dark. Few know my true face, and I use that to help as just another Republic Officer. It pays to have the Admiral of the entire Republic Navy as your best friend, don't ever let anyone tell you Carth Onasi was a pure by the book war hero. If he was he never would have agreed to help falsify papers that identify me a Colonel in the Republic Space Marines. _

_My wife and I live our lives under a veil of secrecy. Only those closest to us know who I am. To the rest of the galaxy I am un well-known officer who wooed a Jedi Princess. At the moment I am putting my words into this message I enjoy a beautiful sight. The woman of my dreams, the woman who allowed me to remember what saving the galaxy meant, singing our triplets to sleep._

_Force help me, why must I be surrounded by powerful women? Three girls growing up. I refuse to allow any boy near them. Not until they can beat me in a sparring match at least. _

_For the rest of our lives, the Galaxy will know peace. My daughters will know peace, and my grandchildren eventually. That is certain. I know that you are in the midst of yet another conflict with the Darkside of the Force. I am sorry that you haven't known the peace we know now. But remember one thing. You are of my blood. You are of Bastila's blood. We fell to the dark side and returned to the light. We achieved the greatest of master had failed to do. There is nothing you are incapable of accomplishing. So long as you do not stand alone, so long as you have loved ones at your side, you will never see the Republic fall. _

_When the Jedi forget what is to love, that will be the day its end will be assured. _

_Revan Shan_

"You returned to the light ancestor. You saved the galaxy from the animal that was once your best friend. And eventually you came to Bastila." Satele Shan calmly set the data pad on her lap. The thirty year old Master then proceeded to place her face in her hands, elbows resting on either side of the data pad. The ancient temple outer wall was at her back and a cold night had fallen over the area. As the sound of thunder began to boom all around her, the descendant of Revan and Bastila raised her head and looked to the sky. "But what have your foreseen would require my first student? Why did you need to take Solrac away?"

It had been hours since the blasted droid had explained to her Revan's plan. The one time Dark Lord had seen visions of a time when the Sith would rule the galaxy for the first time. Where the Jedi Order of the Old Republic was forever gone. He'd seen that Solrac would have a place in those dark times. And as such had found a way to get him there.

Satele wiped the tears that she had finally fallen from her eyes. Solrac was gone to her. She would never see or hear him again. For all intents and purposes, he was dead to their time period. Silently she accepted what Solrac had asked her. He was closest thing she had ever known to a son. Might as well make it official, even if it was just to Mandalorians.

_**AN: R&R please. Do be gentle with them though. Now let me give you some basic info on what the heck happened. Heard of the Muur Talisman and Celeste Morne? The Medallion contains a certain someone. I'd love to see some people try and guess who it is. **_

_**NO, it won't be set during the The Old Republic video game story line. I have no idea what will happen in that game. I put in the movie section because that's where it'll take place. This was the prologue, just to introduce the main protagonist of my story. **_

_**There is one small problem though. Thankfully its one I think you can help me with. I don't know whether to put him in the Prequel Trilogy, or the Original trilogy. I warn you, the next chapter will be set a year or two before the AoTC if you want the Original, and around the same time as the end of the Force Unleashed I if it's the Original Trilogy. Also no matter what, Solrac will have a rivalry with Boba Fett, and this is going to be an AU. Don't assume what happens in the movies will happen here. **_

_**Maybe the rebels lose, maybe Vader dies, maybe Luke and Leia know who their father is from the beginning, maybe the Mandalorian people get involved with the Empire as a hired army. Etc. **_

_**Thanks for reading, leave your decision on the era you want in the reviews, or just IM me the answer. Also, check one of my other two stories if you want. Could always use more criticism to make them better. **_

_It is odd that I do not remember the name I was born with. Nor have the records survived the bombardment of the Academy on Dantooine. Revan was originally a title, but it has become as good a name for myself as any I suppose. It will make sure I never forget my actions. _


	2. Chapter 2

_New Galaxy, New Mando Boy Part I_

The central chamber of the tomb of the one time Dark Lord, and Prodigal Knight of the Jedi Order, Revan was devoid of all traces of life. The entire complex that comprised the many levels, turns, corridors, doors, walls, and similar chambers lay in an identical state to the central chamber. Darkness encompassed all possible places. The energy source that powered the temple producing an amount of power so low that it could not be detected by any means.

The collected dust of dozen upon dozen of centuries of carelessness was everywhere. For well over thirty six hundred years not a soul had entered the tomb. At least not a soul that had lived to escape it with their lives. The traps laid by the fallen champion of the Order were the only object that still remained fully functional.

The tomb had been long forgotten by any significantly powerful group centuries ago. It was not the only thing that had been forgotten over the millennium that separated its last surviving discoverer and the galaxy at the present. Few even remembered the events that had taken place during the era of its construction. Fewer still the man supposedly buried within its walls.

A single occupant maintained a less than silent vigil. The orange plated assassin droid known as HK-47, the personal assassin droid of Darth Revan, was making a patrol sweep throughout the entire complex. The machine had been following its programming to the letter over the course of exactly 346 galactic standard years.

Over the years the droid had to import its memory banks into a replacement body once its current one was in danger of shutting down, either from lack of power or increasing equipment failure. The droid body that held the data that was HK-47 was the droid's third

such replacement. While the droid was to certain of its superiority to admit it, there was some worry that it would run out of replacements before its primary directive could begin.

Its original master's plan had been relatively simple. Guard the tomb until a Force-Sensitive had activated the Star Saber Medallion. Once that was done HK-47 was meant to place the then comatose subject into a stasis pod and set the power systems to keep the pod functioning throughout the projected centuries. As soon as the power met the specified requirement, HK was programmed to begin its vigil of the tomb. Guarding the stasis pod and its sole occupant until it would open.

HK had followed its Master's orders to the smallest letter, and agreed to do so without any hesitation. Unfortunately its Master had failed to inform the droid of how long it would have to just _wait_.

Simply put HK-47, the perfect assassination droid, was bored.

Worse still: HK-47 hadn't killed any organic meatbags throughout the entire time. Not once had anyone penetrated the tomb's closed entrance. The droid had not even been presented with an opportunity to utilize any of its weapons as well. Unless one counted the several dozen dead vermin it had left behind during its mostly silent vigil.

The droid soon stopped at the end of yet another of the many twists and turns that made up the tomb. Red eyed photoreceptors dimmed by several levels as the machine calmly turned to face the way it came from. Silently it made a pledge to torture its master for instructing it to perform such a menial and unnecessary. Regardless HK-47 let out a long and worn sigh.

It still had to patrol the complex twice more before it returned to guard the stasis pod for the next twelve hours. Yes. HK-47 was truly beginning to hate its original Master. As well as its mistake in assuming that there would be many to kill while guarding the Force-Sensitive.

Such a wonderful _joy_ this assignment from his Master would be!

* * *

_There was no feeling whatsoever. The only sensation that existed was that of a strange and vaguely pleasant warmth. In fact it was beginning to feel- wait. He could _feel_! Now his mind felt like he was returning from his first high from _uji_ cakes. The rest of his body was still unresponsive, and he could barely think. _

_Wait, was this death? Odd. He had always assumed that when he was dead that there would be nothing. Only the most powerful of Master Level Jedi Knights were capable of becoming One with the Force. Only then could they truly retain any such feelings, or that was what the Jedi archives would tell. In either case, he was not a Master. Actually he had no idea what a master was, or what a Jedi was in the first place. _

_Or his own name, he was even sure how he knew he was a _guy_! _

_Yet there was something he knew. He knew that he was a warrior, one that would not be beaten until he was truly dead. If he was alive and it certainly still felt that way, more or less as he still had no feeling, then he would fight it. _

_As much as he could manage he began to try an force back all the confusion that plagued him. Slowly but steadily his mind began to clear itself, enough that he could begin to feel the rest of his senses kicking in. The man, for some reason he knew that was what he was, could just barely make out the sound of water striking water. _

_He became aware of both his own slightly haggard breathing, as well as the now apparent splitting headache. He also noticed the smell of flowers as well as feel a light mist. But more than anything he felt a sense of familiarity, like he had been wherever this was before. _

_As he forced himself to maintain a steady pattern of in taking fresh air, he attempted to open his unbelievably heavy eye lids. To his frustration the most he had managed to obtain was a slight twitch. The man tried once again to force his eyes to open and take in his surroundings. Much to his chagrin the most he succeeded in accomplishing was a slight fluttering open of his eyes. Unfortunately he immediately regretted it as he was also rewarded with another dose of pain to his already head-splitting migraine. _

_After waiting several seconds, at least he assumed as there was no real way to measure time, for the pain to ease away the man attempted yet again. Once satisfied that the worst had dissipated he made another round of attempts at regaining his sight. This time the man was prepared for the pain and forced himself to ignore the worst of it. _

_Slowly his eyes did open fully, only to once again shut themselves when the bright light temporarily blinded him. Satisfied that he could at least _open_ his eyes, the man decided to take his own sweet time regaining control of his body. While a voice in the back of his head told him not to let his guard down, the man ignored it. At the moment he could barely even open his eyes, let alone move any of his appendages. _

_His eyes shot open at the last thought. He hadn't even attempted to move a single arm or leg. He hadn't felt any of them either. Temporarily a primal fear found its way into his heart. Few life forms had no qualms with losing any one of their limbs, and he was no exception. _

_The man forced himself try and lift himself up. Curious. . . It was surprisingly more easy than opening his eyes had been. He suddenly had the urge to begin cursing how unfair that truly was, not even questioning why that felt like the proper thing to do. Once he was in a seated position he fully opened his eyes. _

_The first thing he did was to inspect the rest of his body, wanting to make sure he was all fully there. To his immediate satisfaction he saw that he still had two legs, then he moved to hold his hands out in front of him. A sense of elation flooded him, the knowledge that he was not permanently crippled finally clearing most of his mind. _

_The next thing the man noticed was his choice of outfits. He was decked out in some strange looking armor. Somehow he knew it should have felt heavier, and yet it was easier than ever to lift up his arms. That didn't seem right he told himself, he knew that his body was accustomed to wearing this and yet he knew that it had never been so physically easy to move in. _

_The man then began to look over his body taking note of all the minor details he had not noticed before. He hadn't noticed that the armor was a bright green, although perhaps that had to do with the bright light his present location possessed. He saw that he had two long orange lightning shaped stripes from his shoulders to just above his belt. The man then took note of two weapons strapped to the sides of his belt. Two blasters pistols._

_No. Not just a pair of blaster pistols. _Mandalorian_ blaster pistols. M-a-n-d-a-l-o-r-i-a-n, he silently spelled the word to himself. Suddenly he gripped his head as a sharp pain reached him. The man shook his head viciously trying to shake off the growing blackness in his sight, only to stop as his eyes rested momentarily on a strange sight. _

_It was a helmet. It was green like the rest of his armor, and had an orange trim around an other-wise gold tinted T-visor, orange _jai'galaar'la sur'haii'se _above the sides of the visor's edge. The pain oddly subsided immediately as his eyes continued to stare into the visor. Just as quickly his mind was assaulted by wave after wave of memories, flashes of a persons life. No. Not just a person's life, his own life. _

_Solrac realized that his mind was now fully cleared, which he hoped meant he was okay. Mostly that is. The feeling in his body soon returned to him, and he sluggishly tried to stand up, only to fall to the ground thanks to his still shaky legs. Cursing his own weakness he attempted to stand once again, and he did fall for a second time. _

_The Mandalorian could not believe how weak his body had become. When did he- oh. Yes. The _di-kutla _mistake he made when he decided to pick up the medallion. If he was really alive then he knew his former master would certainly have his _shebs _for doing something so totally in line with an _or'dinii _jawa attacking a Sand Peoples camp by itself. _

_Never mind the _ka'ra _he'd definitely be seeing when his Mandalorian _alor _found out he'd nearly robbed the woman of a very skilled potential Bes'Kad commando. Clan Fett Chieftain Briika Fett was one of the few female Mandalorian leaders, and one of the most skilled leaders of the primarily clan led Mandalorian Bes'Kad Commandos. The _Bes'Kad_, the name of a Mandalorian Iron Saber, was the perfect name for the elite warriors of the Mandalorian Military. _

_Reluctantly accepting the fact that he should not place much strain on his body while he was still in an unknown area, the Mandalorian turned his head to look at the helmet. Sighing he pushed himself onto his chest plate and then began to pull himself towards the final piece of his armor. _

_He was just about to grasp it when the damned piece of beskar'gam floated away from him. Groaning Solrac rolled to his left, sat up, and made eye contact with the Force-Sensitive he knew was with him. Or he would have if the man wasn't wearing his own mask. A very familiar Mandalorian mask. _

_Solrac quickly dropped his right hand to rest on the grip of one of his Mandalorian pistols, the heavy weapon sliding the barest of centimeters out of its holster. The mask was the same one he had activated, which in turn revealed to him the medallion, which he idiotically reached for, _which _he knew was responsible for his current predicament. Despite being a normally friendly and carefree kind of Mandalorian, heck his friends all called him shereshoy, he was truly tempted to simply blast away at the figure whose face the mask hid from him. _

"_So. . . You gonna tell me what I'm doing here, or are you going to play dress up and try out my helmet? Though I can see why. I mean that mask is definitely nowhere near as impressive as a real buy'ce." he said to the figure in a half humorous, half angry tone. The figure standing before him clad in black robes and a dark brown cloak merely tilted its head. _

_And judging from the sound, he began to laugh loudly. _

_Confused beyond all measure, Solrac pulled out the pistol he had been gripping. Either this man was supremely confident that he could defeat Solrac, or he was just plain crazy, it did not change one key fact. There was a great chance that this mysterious individual would make an attack on him, and he had to be honest with himself. Solrac had little training in the ways of using the Force in offensive manners, and in his weakened state his physical prowess would be next to nothing. That left him with one way to defend himself: make the first fatal shot if this person truly meant him harm. _

"_I see that you possess much the same attitude as Mirta," the unknown man spoke once his laughter had subsided. "If you can speak to a person in that manner as disadvantaged for a fight as you are, and not search for a way out of the situation." _

"_Uh-huh. I'm dead aren't I? Cause there is absolutely no way I can be alive and be this confused if I'm still alive." Solrac said dryly. Though for some reason he didn't feel threatened by this man. In all actuality this man carried himself with an aura of calm that could ease the worry of any sentient life form that spoke with him. Just like Master Shan did with himself. He watched curiously as the man raised his left hand and cupped the chin of his mask._

"_Hmm. Well," the man began after several seconds of though, "You aren't alive per say, but neither are you dead. Does that make sense?" _

"_About as much as a Krayt Dragon adopting a Bantha as its daughter. No wait, especially if the Bantha was a male." _

"_Has anyone ever told you that you have one of the oddest sense of humor the galaxy has ever seen?" the mysterious man said after returning his hand to his sides. Solrac's eyes were then latched onto his helmet it as it floated down towards him. Grasping it, he quickly placed the helmet over his head and sealed his armor. _

"_Yes actually. I lost count after the hundredth person though, the numbers probably twice that high now." Solrac said, inwardly beginning to trust that whoever this man was that he did not have to worry about being shot in the back. Or stabbed. Or kicked. Or _eaten_. _

"_Oh please, as if I would ever become a cannibal. If your going to go about making absurd assumptions about my character, then do at least _try _to think civilized possibilities would you?" _

"_That would depend on whether or not you can give me some answers." _

"_Very well. Ask all the questions you'd like. I won't do anything but answer. And maybe think of ways to get back at you for wasting time, eventually that is." _

"_All right, I guess I can live with that. First question," Solrac began, "What in the Force is this place? It feels familiar." the Mandalorian man followed up his question by gesturing around him. For the first time since opening his eyes Solrac was aware of the large and peaceful garden they were in. _

"_And familiar it should. You my boy-" _

"_MAN! Why does no one bother to know that Mandalorians become adults at thirteen years of age!" fumed the fifteen year old as he interrupted. Still the man continued as though he hadn't been rudely interrupted. _

"_- are currently sitting in the Garden of the Five Hundred Fountains." _

"_500?" Solrac asked in amusement. "Really?" _

"_Yes. I know, Jedi never have been much for eye catching names. Always so literal and to the point." added the mysterious man. "Though this is not the one in the Order's Academy on Tython." _

"_I knew this couldn't be the real deal," replied Solrac nonchalantly before grinning mischievously behind the visor. "There aren't any Knights or Masters yelling at me, or young girls blushing whenever I smiled at them. Actually, I wouldn't mind the whole yelling part if you could bring some girls into this picture." _

"_And this is who the Medallion choose?" the mysterious man sighed as he shook his head from side to side. "I didn't think they'd be right. Wow, were my friends this annoyed with me those times? Huh, guess I really could have been a bit more serious then. Still, could they really have blamed me?" _

"_Uh, yeah. . . Are you done with this weird monologue speech thing? Or can I ask my next question?" asked a now wary Solrac. His previous questioning of the man's sanity returning as the masked figure spoke to himself. _

"_Sure. Why not?" _

"_What in the hell is with that medallion? Is it yours, and if it is, did it bring me wherever this is?" Solrac asked in one breath. _

"_That's more than one question." _

"_No. One breath equals one question." _

"_Yeah. This is going to be a pleasant enough year I suppose." the mysterious figure said after several moments of silence. "How about I tell you my name, and then you repeat each of those questions one at a time?" _

"_Why not? It beats me calling you the 'Mysterious Stranger' in my head all the time." Solrac answered with a shrug. To his confusion, the man began to laugh once again. "What is so funny now? Seriously, I know I'm the comic relief kinda guy but even I know that wasn't funny." _

"_Apologies. Its just that I did go by that name once. Years and years ago on Taris, when I was champion of the Dueling Ring. My name is Revan. The one time Dark Lord of the Sith, Prodigal Knight, husband to Bastila Shan, and ancestor of Jedi Master Satele Shan. Why not, I'll answer some questions before you have to ask them. Yes, the Medallion brought you here." Revan said. While shocked at meeting a long dead, and quite powerful Force wielder, Solrac was not ovewhelmed enough that he could not speak._

_"Why did it bring me here?" he asked slowly._

_"It brought you here because the galaxy will be in danger of falling to the control of the Sith. Because I foresaw a time when the Jedi order would be wiped out, the knowledge destroyed entirely. A galaxy where the Jedi Order as we know, could never be born again. A galaxy where the Sith have overthrown the Republic, and replaced it with a brutal Empire. That is why it brought you here. That was the purpose I designed it for. Well actually one of them." Answered the former Dark Lord of the Sith. _

_"Okay. But your talking like thats going to be years and years from now. Thousands even. I don't see the point of brining me here just to warn me about something that will happen when I'm long dead." said the young Manadalorian man._

_"Because your mind is in the Medallion, and your true body in a stasis pod of my own design. You are right, this will likely not occur for several thousand years. But you will be _alive _to meet it." _

"_Wait, wait, wait. Hold up." Solrac said, holding up his hands. "You're telling me, that I'm gonna be stuck here for a few _thousand_ years! What about my time! There is a war going on then, what if Mandalore is attacked! I have to be there to protect my clan!"_

"_I understand your reluctance quiet well." Revan spoke calmly, as though the Mandalorian hadn't exploded into a tirade of shouts. "But I also know that the Mandalorian people will need you more in the time you find yourself, than those of your own."_

"_What are you talking about?" Solrac asked, his anger quickly fading into fear for his adoptive people. _

"_The Mandalorian people as you know them will gradually fade until all that remains of the once feared warriors is a man. A man all but broken by loss, and his own failure. A man who will abandon his title. But that does not matter." Revan said as he stood up, gesturing for the Mandalorian to do the same. "I have seen that you have the potential to tip the balance between the Light and Dark. Your going to need to learn more than a years worth of Jedi teachings. This is a world of the Force, time has no meaning here. You will learn from how to use the Force, and how to fight like a Jedi as well. Lets just hope you're a fast learner." _

_"Why? Lets say I believe you. WHY do I have to learn from you." demanded the fifteen year old. _

"_Because. I am the only one who can teach you. And I know no matter how much you may deny it, you wish to learn. You wish to be someone's student, to learn to use your gift as an ally not a deformity. And because the galaxy may be ruled by darkness for thousands of years." the Prodigal Knight extended his hand towards Solrac. "Do you accept, young Mandalorian?" _

_

* * *

_

The armored figure limped slightly from the shadows. Cursing at his own small and idiotic mistake in the recent fire fight. Slowly the man stooped down to pick up one of his WESTAR-34, wincing slightly as the pain briefly flashed across his entire right arm.

"_Di'kutla beskar'ad. _It had to have a stealth field generator. Where the hell did it get a Mandalorian heavy repeater from? Those things stopped being manufactured over 2,000 years ago." the figure continued to silently curse his luck.

This job wasn't worth the trouble he'd had to deal with. That droid was an experienced assassin droid, there simply wasn't a battle droid in production that had that kind of capability. In fact he'd much rather be back on Kamino teaching his son his trade. Young Boba would make a skilled bounty hunter in time, and Jango Fett wanted to be sure his son had the knowledge to succeed him as the Galaxy's most infamous bounty hunter.

He heard the sound of servos followed by more sparks behind him.

"State-: You wil- - ke- me from -filing my program-g meatbag."

"_Udessi. _Take a nice long nap you scrap heap." Jango said as he turned and fired a blaster bolt into its head. The orange plated machine finally ceased its machinations and fell with a reverberating thud. Black scorch marks showed the signs of further hits. Standing absolutely still, Jango continued to stare down his droid opponent until he was sure it was out of commission.

Twirling his WESTAR, Fett slid it back into the right holster he'd drawn it from. The bounty hunter then turned and limped towards his objective. The three blaster burns on his left shoulder and hand, as well as his right thigh, made walking difficult. Who ever had programmed that droid knew how to make a killing machine for certain. Few were the opponents that had lasted so long, or injured him as much as that annoying piece of scrap.

The fact that his injuries were the result of a droid further wounded his pride.

"You had better be worth at least what Tyranus paid me for this job." Fett said as his hand wiped away the dust on the machine before him. A familiar looking helmet greeted his sight. "Thousand year old Mandalorians. Not the oddest job description. Bringing you to Geonosis, still inside this thing? That_ is _odd. Especially when I probably got a Jedi search team chasing me." As he steped back from the stasis pod, Jango Fett shook his head as he realized something. "How I am I supposed to get you out, when I'm like this?"

_**AN: Part I of Solrac's intro into Attack of the Clones. Yes, the tally was four Prequel trilogy era, four Original. Since this is my story I decided to end the tie by going with the one I liked better for this story. **_

_**Next question, what animal should I have fight Solrac in the Execution Arena, yeah there will be a big scary animal to fight him. But its your choice! You know what? I am really getting into this story? Its so easy to right Solrac, his parts with Revan were the fastest for me to come up with. **_


	3. Chapter 3

_New Galaxy, New Mando Boy Part II _

_He felt a tight hold on his wrists, as well as a noticeable lack of something. The young man attempted to rouse himself from sleep, only to begin a series of short blinks. His breathing came back to him and so he focused on that, attempting to still the slow growing instinctive panic he was feeling. The young man's mind felt somewhat sluggish compared to what it felt normally. _

_Solrac attempted to quickly open his eyes the moment he smelled nothing. Wherever he was, there was no scent and that made any hunter worry. Eventually Solrac's eyes did open; only to find themselves staring into a very familiar sight. A Mandalorian styled helmet, albeit not one he was familiar with. For a brief moment the young Mandalorian assumed that he was still on Mandalore, that he hadn't touched anything, and that he still had time to prepare himself to become a _Bes'Kad_ commando. He felt the corners of his lips curl into a faint smile. _

"_Mandalore?" he asked hopefully. The response was not what he expected to happen at all, not even if he was wrong about the planet. Solrac had become an expert on the numberless amounts of slight changes in posture that showed one's state of mind. And at that moment, he saw the faint tilt of the helmet back, and the slight almost indiscernible tension in the shoulders. He had surprised this man, whoever he was. The question was how. _

"Ni vercopa par megin gai bah cuyir shi tome'tayl." _the helmed warrior said in a threatening whisper, before tilting his head closer to Solrac. _"Mando'ade oyacyir be'chaaj teh ibic vhetin. Ni cuyir be haar kyr'yc."

_Solrac's eyes continued to stare at the T-visor in silence, unable to grasp what he had been told. Shaking his head the fifteen year old glared at the Mandalorian in front of him. _

"Gar jorhaa'ir Mando, gar akaanir, mhi su oyacyir," _he said defiantly, unwilling to accept that his people were truly gone. _"Megin jorhaa'ir be cuun kyr'am vaabir gar rejorhaa'ir ni?"

"_The Jedi happened kid. One last battle, wiped out over 300 of my brothers. The last of the True Mandalorians." he spoke, and Solrac swore he detected a trace of loss. Whoever this man was, he certainly was a Mando'ade. He spoke the language of the Taungs, and he spoke it with a typical Mandalorian accent. Something that he had secretly missed in his time trapped in the medallion. _

_Yet everything he said still hurt the young man. He'd hoped that everything had been nothing more than a dream, that Revan was wrong. But the one time Dark Lord must have been right; there was no way the Mandalorian people could have possibly died out in short amount of time. _

_Such a process would have taken thousands of years. Solrac cringed at the thought; he felt the cold reality of his situation finally reaching his logical side at the very idea. He truly was in the future, he truly was alone. _

_And he had never felt so lost in his life before. _

_Solrac then began to rapidly shake his head in an attempt to push away such despairing thoughts. It was at that moment he took notice of a very odd feeling of weightlessness. He soon stopped his movement and then decided to take stock of his present situation, asking himself several questions to ensure his mind was fully awake. _

_Questions like, why did he just notice the Mandalorian was walking away from him. On the ceiling. _

**No. Not the ceiling, no one can do that. Wait. I'm feeling lightheaded, theres a person walking on what I though was the ceiling. Oh. Oh SHEBS.**

_Instantly Solrac took in a deep breath and then launched the upper half of his body towards his legs, the movement felt terribly familiar. He knew, he knew before his eyes saw it, exactly why he felt strange. The young Mandalorian had often spent hours improving his physical prowess through unorthodox workouts, mainly modifications of traditional Mandalorian exercises taken up a level with the Force. _

_One was completing a thousand abdominal crunches while suspended from the edge of a cliff, the only thing separating him from an unfortunate death his ability to maintain an untied piece of rope around a small boulder through mental will. _

_This was why he knew that he was being held prisoner. . . Upside down. With a loud groan he allowed his had to fall back towards the ground. Solrac felt uncontrollable frustration at his current position, especially as the chains that pinned his hands below his head causing great discomfort. The youth quickly dissolved into a long tirade of curses in multiple languages, all involving the Mandalorian that had captured him. _

_Which made no sense whatsoever to him even now. How far had his adopted people fallen? What had become of them, to cause them to go so far from the honorable men and women of his time, the type of people who hunted their own? _

_Solrac shook his head, unable to comprehend it even now. The Galaxy must have changed tremendously indeed, and not for the betterment of his people. _

_The youth then sighed in exasperation as he tried to devise a plan. First he had to find out what he had to work with. _

_One: he had his body. Solrac began moving every part of his body in order to determine if he had any debilitating injuries. To his joy he found none at all. Actually what he was feeling was more akin to the after effects of being drugged. Which, he had to be honest, quite likely that he hadn't been in any shape to offer resistance during his capture. _

_Two: he had his wits about him. Then he sighed. The closest thing he had to a father had been his training instructor when he first found a band of Mandalorian mercenaries. That man had told him a lesson to live by: always know how much strength you ever held in any field of war. And if Solrac was to be honest wit himself, he wasn't particularly intelligent. _

_Three: he still had the Force. The Force and the Star Medallion if he could find it that is. When he had been brought to the Jedi Temple on Tython the Council had told him that he was only slightly above average in terms of Force potential. At the time he was a shy child who lacked any confidence, and as a result he started out feeling uncertain as to his chances of ever becoming a good Knight. Despite this his Master had drilled into his head her own opinion about his skills. The greatest of Jedi were the ones who could do the most with the least, not the ones who had the rawest talent. _

_And so he quickly turned his lack of confidence into fuel for his desire to honor his Master's belief in him. Solrac smirked as he remembered the numerous visits to the Temple healers' stays which lasted at the most a single day. Never in his year as a padawan had he ever allowed himself to lower his own personal expectations. Even after he had been forced to leave the Order he never stopped his training for a moment, merely made modifications to ensure their challenge. _

_The Mandalorian began to take slow and deep breaths, clearing his mind and bringing up his emotions to the surface at the same time. Once he opened himself to the Force fully the youth began to expand his senses, using his emotions to match up any life forms he sensed. _

_Solrac was shocked when he felt the presence of several thousand children, each and everyone more or less radiating innocence which he was nearly overwhelmed by. He was further surprised when he felt barely several hundred adults, many utterly alien to him. Those felt. . . Almost dead to life itself as though they had never been truly born at all, if anything several of them felt as though they'd come from a factory of some kind. _

_The rest however felt familiar to him, as well as partially unnerving. These presences reminded him of the older members of his adopted clan: radiating an aura of experience, confidence, and the ruthlessness that all Mandalorian instructors possessed. He sensed that many of these being were surrounded by anywhere from dozens to slightly over a hundred of the children. _

_Was this place some kind of massive training facility for the Mandalorians of this time? Perhaps the Mandalorian that had captured him had merely meant that the traditional Mandalorian culture had disappeared. Solrac knew for a fact that traditionally children were taught first by their parents and then training in small teams for organized military operations. Never in the numbers he was sensing, in fact he doubted there had ever been this many children training across Mandalorian controlled space when he was learning himself. _

_A sudden rush of pain forced him out of his mental scouting. With a surprised yelp he felt his head strike the cold floor and saw the flash of lights behind his eyes. Soon the rest of his body fell on to the floor as well and before he could even utter a curse he felt the sound of a blaster being activated. Through the short seconds of disorientation brought on by the pain he knew the sound was coming from a point inches from his face, as well as a further five similar sounds reaching his ears in a chorus of whines. _

"Olaror bat! Ni ganar su bah echoy be'chaaj teh ibic naritir!" _He shouted at the top of his lungs, the throbbing pain in his skull pounding like war drums on campaign. "I know haven't pissed off even a_ darjetti _yet, so why am I being put through this!"_

"Udesii!" _bellowed a powerfully commanding voice. Considering that none of the blasters pointed at him had yet to discharge a shot, Solrac assumed the voice belonged to one of the instructors. The fact that it was a Mandalorian command simply banished any lingering doubt he may have had about this place. "Boy-" _

"_FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THE FORGOTTEN GODS! I AM NOT A BOY!" Solrac found himself shouting once again, cursing in a dozen languages silently. How many times would he have to explain that he was a man! "I passed my _Verd'goten_ damn it! I am a MAN!" as he took in ragged breaths Solrac noticed the change in the atmosphere. The tension was replaced by an almost tangible surprise, though which was worse he had no idea. _

"_You passed the warrior's initiation rite?" asked the commanding voice. Slowly the vision came back to Solrac, and with a few quick blinks he was able to see clearly again. Judging by the narrow eyed glare that made him fearful for his life, the young Mandalorian assumed the voice belonged to the middle aged looking man standing over him. _

"_Yes. The Traditional Clan Gev rite to be exact. Enter the territory of a shriek-hawk on Mandalore, and kill one using only bow and arrow." Solrac told the man proudly. "Uh. Mind telling me _why_ you're looking at me like I'm as big a liar as a Hutt denying his wealth, while sitting on a mountain of gold at the same time?" _

"_Because Clan Gev no longer hunts shriek-hawks haven't for nearly 1,500 years now. Who are you?" _

_

* * *

_Solrac snapped his eyes open, his hand dropping to grip his blaster pistol, as his helmet's audio picked up a strange sound. The nearly sixteen year old Mandalorian homed in on the source of the sound, or at least attempted to, and eventually found it had disappeared. With an annoyed growl the sleep deprived Mando re-holstered his new WESTAR-34 blaster pistol.

Leaning back against the durasteel door Solrac placed his head in his hands. The young Mandalorian had barely gotten ten hours of sleep in the entire week. It had been several months since he had woken up on Kamino and then found his way off world, with help from a man who seemed to have a genuine desire to see him safe. Kal Skirta had given him one condition in exchange for his aid; Solrac was never to speak of that planet to another living soul so long as he lived. This wasn't hard considering he knew next to nothing of the damned world.

He'd found out so much about the state of the galaxy since escaping that planet. Including the depressing fact that Mandalore no longer had any real standing army left, as well as the knowledge of several clans he had been familiar with that no longer existed. For a few weeks he had allowed himself to enter a state of depression, unable to cope with how much his people had changed, at how much he had lost.

Eventually though he had come out of it, with help from the portion of Revan's spirit which resided in the Star Medallion. Solrac had simply found himself disgusted with what he had allowed happen to himself one day, and then decided to find a place to get his bearings. A place where he would be able to rest and consider what he was going to do with his life from there on out. There really had been only one logical choice open to him: Mandalore itself.

Though there was one more reason for his desire to hide out on his people's homeworld for a time. During his escape of Kamino Solrac had been forced to "borrow" the WESTAR-34 pistol he now carried. At the time he was not aware of its owner, the current Mandalore Jango Fett. The very same Mandalorian who had captured and brought him to Kamino in fact, the irony had been a sobering discovery.

Despite his weariness Solrac felt his anger rise to the surface of his mind at the mere thought of the man. How could he even live with himself, living a life as one who had turned his back on Mandalore and its people? He had been enraged when he discovered that the very title meant little more than the commander of the Mandalorian forces. The leader of the Mandalorians had ceased to be a true leader of their people; he had become merely a figurehead. Solrac had made a promise to himself that one day he would wipe Fett off the face of the Galaxy. The man was little more than a stain on the proud warrior tradition.

With a great amount of willpower Solrac forced the anger down. He was in no position to go toe-to-toe with the _aruetii_, traitor or not Fett wouldn't have risen to lead his people unless he had the skill to do so. The young Mandalorian knew he lacked both the experience and skill to kill him, and while he wanted Fett's death Solrac was not suicidal.

The fact that Jango Fett likely still had the young Mandalorian's armor had nothing to do with his desire for blood. Much that is. Solrac was currently making do with a cheap durasteel copy of Mandalorian armor he'd bought from his only friend in the galaxy.

On pure reflex Solrac ducked his head to the right, barely avoiding a blue fist that appeared as a blur to his vision. As he continued into the movement he pushed off with his feet, turning the duck into a full roll to the side. The maneuver barely kept him from being struck a trio of green blaster bolts. In a single fluid motion he had drawn the WESTAR and took off at a sprint in the same direction as the roll.

More bolts impacted the ground behind him, his boots keeping ahead of the precise fire only by the smallest of centimeters. He began turned slightly to spot his attacker, firing off several shots the moment his eyes locked on a sky blue armor. The figure launched itself into the air and the roar of a jet pack reached his ears. With the momentary break in the exchange Solrac dropped o his knees and took aim.

His opponent did the same, though Solrac was not the first to fire unfortunately. Opening himself to the Force Solrac began to follow the green bolt. He knew by its trajectory that he would be unable to dodge it; the shot had been well done aimed directly at his helmet. The durasteel did not offer the same protection as _beskar'gam_; the bolt would melt through quite easily.

That left him with one possible hope for survival at his disposal. Solrac used the Force to add a lightning fast burst of speed to his arms, bringing the WESTAR to level with the incoming shot. Without thought from his brain he fired three immediate shots in response. The first shot struck the figure's weapon, while the second grazed the edge of the right shoulder.

The third bolt met his opponents shot just feet from him, the two blaster bolts canceling each other out.

Taking advantage of the moment Solrac reached out with the Force. He then proceeded to pull his opponent from the air and towards him. Pivoting to the left he avoided colliding with the fast moving armored opponent. He launched his empty left hand outwards and caught his foe across the chest with his outstretched arm, the impact jarring all the bones in the limb.

The figure's momentum carried it over his arm and into an uncontrolled somersault. The moment his opponent's back collided with the floor Solrac had his blaster pistol aimed at its face.

"_Ori pirebu ogir. Gar kandosii'la gar kar'taylir megin?" _he said in Mandalorian. He re-holstered the pistol before offering his opponent a hand. "You're getting up there Krista. If I was just a fraction of a second slower, I'd have been down for good." a blue glove raised up to grip his offered hand. Then pulled him down the ground with surprising strength that would have surprised many who didn't understand what teenage _Mando'ade_ were like. Before he knew what had happened Solrac found himself straddled above the waist by a Mandalorian of equal height to him, a vibro-tanto at the unprotected area of his throat and an S-5 blaster pistol held above his heart.

"You were saying?" asked a noticeably feminine voice. Krista leaned forward slightly, the tanto slightly cutting through the thin layer of protection over his throat.

"I meant to say, that uh," Solrac gulped in a breath of air. "Women are superior to men, and now that I've said that you won't take anything very important to my person? And that you are a very attractive girl?" he said hopefully, specks of fear evident in his voice.

"That's more like it," replied the sixteen year old Mandalorian woman. "The attractive part was a nice touch by the way." the pair soon turned their heads to look to their left as they heard a nearby chuckle. Soon the sound of over exaggerated clapping began to echo throughout the room, the chuckle morphing into an uncontrolled maniacal laugh. "Is that really necessary Garek?"

"Is that a trick question? 'Cause if it is, then I wants to exercise my right to ignore it in my own way. Like this." another Mandalorian in full armor stepped out of the nearby shadows, after he started to laugh again. Clad in iron grey armor he was visibly taller than the pair still on the floor, a white cloak hung over his right shoulder and matched the kama skirt around his waist. A blood red sash tied in a Mandalorian knot was wrapped over the kama, and the armor had white trimming over the joints and visor. He held his helmet in his right hand revealing a man a few years older than Solrac with black neck length hair. "Don't you two even _know_ what you look like right now? Or do you do this so much you just stopped realizing it? Cause honestly, its looks just like you're about _bah vod!_" he then dissolved into further laughter as Krista nearly tripped over herself trying to push herself off of Solrac.

"Garek, you my friend are a pig." Solrac said as he pushed himself up with his elbows, and tilted his head to stare at Krista's back. "Though truth be told, I wouldn't mind that having been the case at all if Kr-" he then screamed in pain as a dart connected with the armor that covered the most important of male anatomy, and then activated a storm of electricity over his entire body.

"Oh quit it with that will you? If you had finished that sentence then you would have found yourself missing a few parts tomorrow morning." Krista said as she brought down the right arm which launched the dart from her wrist launcher. Once the dart lost power Solrac ceased to convulse in pain further, and was helped to his feet by Garek.

"_Kandosii vod!_ Getting your _shebs _handed to you by the 'man' in the relationship are you? HA!" his laughter stopped as Solrac launched his left hand towards Garek, taking hold of a fistful of hair and pulling down hard. "AHH! LET GO OF MY HAIR!" without showing any sign of hearing his comrades cries of pain Solrac pulled harder than before to similar results. "Oh c'mon! _Ni dinui! Ni dinui!_"

"What do you think Krista?" asked Solrac. "Should I do as he says, or play around some more?" Krista responded by making a gesture of closing her fist, then quickly opening it. "Got you. Well my older friend, your wish is my command!" Solrac quickly pulled Garek's hair upwards before kicking out the man's legs. While Garek lay on the floor rubbing his pained head and muttering curses about kids who couldn't take a joke, Solrac and Krista struck fists lightly.

"You know what Solrac?" asked Krista.

"What?"

"You really aren't just another nice face. You're a lifesaver, because if I'd been stuck with that _di'kut_ for another month I probably would have put a bolt between his eyes while he slept."

"What is with all the threats to our lives while we're sleeping? Planning on joining me at night sometime or something?" he narrowly avoided a half hearted punch to his helmet. "Kidding!"

"And then you go and prove to the galaxy that women are superior just by opening you mouth," she then quickly raised a finger. "And if you dare say anything about what I just said, its another dart for you."

"Fine." replied Solrac, doing his best not to turn and attack the now standing Garek for commenting on how whipped he was despite not being married. "All right, enough of that wise guy. Garek seeing as how you were supposed to come and see us when you got an offer, well." he left the rest of his train of thought go unsaid as he waved his hand in circles slightly.

"Sure I didn't just come to watch the entertainment?" asked the smirking long haired man.

"Do you _want_ to get hurt? I had no idea you were into getting hurt so much Garek."

"That was low."

"What did you get?"

"Its not really a contract offer per say. More like a gift. . . From Nurallia. She found some intelligence about a certain someone you want to even the score with. Granta Omega, the _chakaar_ who spaced you right after he took that artifact you found for him. The guy who then jumped his ship leaving you to die alone in space. Remember him?"

"Yeah. . . I remember that _di'kut _never bothered to learn one very important thing. Where is he?" asked Solrac, all playfulness vanishing as it was replaced by a vengeful menacing aura.

"Nurallia got some information passed on to her from one of her secret friends in the Jedi Temple. Apparently there's an unofficial rumor that the Council dispatched a team of Jedi to Korriban, a mission involving a _dar'jetti_ and your acquaintance. The team from the temple left nearly twenty standard hours ago. We're closer to that Sith rock, you should still be able to land there before they do."

"I intend to. If Omega is there, he is a dead man walking. The Order will have to make do with a very unsightly corpse instead." Solrac said as he turned to exit the room and storm of towards the hangar. A single thought echoing in his mind, exactly what Omega had never learned as Solrac swore to kill him.

Mandalorians don't make threats. They make promises, and never broke them.

* * *

_**AN: Well I know I did say that I would take this story into the Clone Wars last chapter, and I'm sorry for breaking that. But you see I decided to take out a few of the Jedi Quest books to get a better grasp on the Clone Wars eve time of the galaxy. Then I decided that it would be a perfect way to introduce Solrac to the Order, and allow me to better flesh out his character. I plan on maybe three or four more chapters before taking this story to the Clone Wars, so be patient. **_

_**On the inevitable questions about the opening part of this chap. Its more of a flashback to Solrac's introduction to the whole "My god, I really am in the future. Everyone I knew is dead." phase of time travel. As well as opens up possibilities for many different paths I could take as the story progresses. And as a whole it foreshadows a key part of my story plot, though you won't make the connection until I'm well into this story. **_

_**Extra note: I am thinking up my dream non-republic mercenary team, comprised of my favorite non-movie characters. So far here's the list as it stands: Solrac(duh), Krista, Garek, Ferus Olin, Fenn Shysa, Rhys Dallows, and the pirate Nym. Yup, I played the video game Starfighter, and became a huge fan of Nym. I picture him as the Hector Barbosa of the Star Wars galaxy. **_

_**Special thanks to both Patriot-112, and DragonKnightRyu for their OC's they sent me, Krista Raez, and Garek Nero, respectively sent by both in that order. Also to anyone who read my first attempt at a Star Wars Fic, you may somewhat remember who Nurallia is. Yup she will be one angle of that particular type of sub-plot. **_

_**Hope you enjoyed it. **_

_**Oh yeah, the escape from Kamino will be explained later on through both dialogue and some short flashbacks. Also the first of the AU path into my Star Wars foray starts next chapter. Up until this point it could have been possible, but next one up will be the begging of my changes to certain things. **_

_**Also here are the translations for the mandalorian words in this chapter. More or less that is. **_

Ni vercopa par megin gai bah cuyir shi tome'tayl = Literally "I dream for that name to be just memory", basically it means "I want that name to be forgotten."

Bes'Kad = Mandalorian Iron Saber

Mando'ade oyacyir be'chaaj teh ibic vhetin. Ni cuyir be haar kyr'yc = Lit "Mandalorians live afar from this fields I be of the last" I used it as "The Mandalorians are long dead, I'm the last."

Gar jorhaa'ir Mando, gar akaanir, mhi su oyacyir = "You speak Mandalorian you fight we still live." Self explanatory.

Megin jorhaa'ir be cuun kyr'am vaabir gar rejorhaa'ir ni = "That speak of our death do you tell I." Why are you saying we're dead.

SHEBS = I think the way its used is a good enough way to determine what this word is.

Olaror bat! Ni ganar su bah echoy be'chaaj teh ibic naritir = Oh Come on! I haven't even left this place yet.

Darjetti = Sith

Udesii = Calm down

Verd'goten = Mandalorian warriors initiation rite. I put my own spin on what this is.

Aruetii = traitor

Ori pirebu ogir. Gar kandosii'la gar kar'taylir megin =

Mando'ade = Mandalorian

bah vod = Basically, he meant they looked like they were about to get intimate minus a bed.

Ni dinui = I give

Kandosii vodNice one brother.

di'kut = Jerk

Chakaar = Thief, Grave Robber, general all purpose insult.


	4. Chapter 4

_Mandalorians don't make threats. _

Solrac Storia, a sixteen year old Mandalorian, stared at the two weapons before him. The young warrior was attempting to decide whether to bring the X-45 sniper rifle, or the prototype DXR6 heavy carbine. This was an incredibly difficult choice for a young man who had a taste for fast and accurate weapons. He was weighing the benefits when the entrance to the armory opened.

"Can't decide what to bring, _vod_?" came the slightly more serious voice of Garek. Solrac turned his head to the side in order to get the slightly older man in his periphery. The iron grey armored warrior took several long steps towards the undecided youth with the door closing after he had stepped in.

"What do you want Garek?" Solrac demanded quickly. The thought of Granta Omega escaping from his grasp when he was so close to the _chakaar_ was beginning to stress the young man somewhat. If his older friend was affected by the tone of voice there were no signs to indicate it. Instead the normally perverted twenty years old placed his hand on Solracs' left shoulder.

"I and Krista are coming with you." Garek answered with his features unusually serious. Solrac shook off the otherwise relaxing gesture of friendship and returned his attention to the weapons before him. "In case you forgot brother let me remind you _what_ Omega is going to Korriban for, let me remind you so you know what you're getting yourself into. A Sith, a bloody _dar'jetti _and a team of Knights heading there to bring the bastard in."

"I can handle myself on my own." Solrac told his friend while holding the DX by the grip. Pressing the stock against his armored shoulder the young warrior peered through the scope of the carbine. "I will _kill _him, I promised myself that."

"Am I saying we were going to steal that from you?" Garek said with slow rising frustration. He sighed before taking a deep breath and exhaling it before walking to nearest empty part of left wall before resting his back against it. Crossing his arms over his chest the Mandalorian gave a half glare at his younger friend. "Solrac, we know you have to do this. The _di'kut _betrayed you, and lied to you about a contract. You know I hate those kinds of people better than anyone."

"Then you'll understand why I'm coming alone." Solrac replied while recalibrating the scope of the carbine. The weapon enthusiast knew that the weapon in his hands would become very popular within the next twenty to thirty years. The DXR6 was longer than most blaster carbines, carried enough stopping power to equal a military issue rifle, and in the hands of an expert could be more accurate than most sniper rifles. Placing the weapon back on the rack with its companions he turned to his friend while placing his hands behind him. "I need to know he died and that it was my skill alone that did it."

"No. You. Are. Not."

"Yes I am." Solrac said while narrowing his eyes. The youth could not ignore this opportunity to end that man's life. He deserved nothing less for what he had done to the young Mandalorian

Krista and I are coming with you. End of discussion." Garek said while pushing off the wall to stand at his full height.

"There is no discussion. You two are not coming plain and simple." retorted the green and orange armored man.

"Storia shut up and take the help man. We are not going to get in your way at all. Krista is content with staying on a ship the entire time. Me? I'm perfectly fine with keeping the Order busy while you kill the man. Why can't you just let us go with you?" questioned Garek.

"I don't need help from you." he answered coldly. Despite the friendship Solrac had developed with the other two Mandalorian warriors he did not seem them as equals. He held them to the same standards as he did the Mandalorian people of his time, the standards of the _Bes'Kad _commandos.

"You still don't respect us do you?" came the now mildly angered voice of Garek. Solrac glared at the taller man before deciding to answer.

"I respect you and Krista, but not the state of the Mandalorian people."

"_Di'kut_, I can't believe you. We are Mandalorian! You as well!" exclaimed Garek.

"No!" was the near instant reply of Solrac. "I am not like the Mandalorians today! I never lowered myself to becoming a pure mercenary! I always remained a soldier of Mandalore first, anything else second! The man who was the last Mandalore himself has thrown aside his duties as leader of our people. Turned his back on his forefathers' legacy, and his responsibility."

"There aren't enough of us left to be a military power like we were in the past! We don't need to be soldiers of Mandalore anymore if the only battles left for us to fight are the conflicts between the _arueti_!"

"In the past the clans were scattered and broken. In the past a Mandalore reunited our people. We fought again and again after a defeat far greater than Galidraan ever was!"

"Exactly!" Garek shouted while walking towards the younger Mandalorian. "The past! The past has come and gone, we are in _today_! Accept that the way of life our people lived thousands of years ago is _gone_ Solrac."

"It will never be gone as long as I still live."

"This isn't just about Omega is it? You're trying to prove something to yourself aren't you?" Garek asked after forcing himself to calm down. Barely a foot separated the green armored warrior from his iron-grey colored friend who was glaring at him with anger tightened fists beginning to crack.

"I don't have to explain anything to you or Krista for that matter."

"Oh you're right about that one actually. You do not need to explain _anything _to the people who consider you a friend. But we are coming with you and that's final. Unless you want to fight us that is. _Are _you willing to attack me and Krista just to prove something to your own blind belief in the past?"

"If you don't get out of my way," Solrac said quietly, "I will have to Garek."

"We aren't budging from this Solrac. As much as you feel you have to do this on your own, Krista and I agree that we have to follow you just as much." Garek said as close to begging for something as the Mandalorian man was willing to go to.

Both Mandalorian men stared at one another with equal determination in their eyes. After spending several months in each others company they both knew that neither would change their minds about their decision. That left only one result of this standoff as the inevitable and both were equally aware of it. Both felt their muscles tense while they prepared to fight any second.

"Garek. . . Please stand aside and let me go. I don't want to fight you my friend." Solrac pleaded one last time. Garek responded by closing his eyes and shaking his head once before they opened again.

"Neither do I _vod, _neither do I."

Solrac chose not to waste any additional time he had left before Omega reached the now dead ancestral home to the Dark Lords of the Sith. Garek launched himself at his stubborn friend a full second earlier than the green armored Mandalorian began his own assault. A pair of iron-grey gloved fists were raised high above the older Mandalorian man's head and became interlocked before he brought them down _hard_.

Without the protection of a helmet the amount of damage the blow would cause to Solracs' head could be near fatal. Knowing this the slightly younger man brought up his left arm up in a high block to stop the incoming blow. The amount of strength behind that first blow shook the bones within the limb and momentarily numbed the arm itself and he unconsciously leaned back somewhat. Garek being the experienced hand-to-hand warrior that he was took instant notice of the change in his opponents' stance and launched a powerful kick to Solracs' torso.

The green armored man used to momentum behind the blow to lean back further before pushing off the ground with his legs and launching himself into the air. While in mid-air Solrac used the Force to increase his movement towards the wall behind him. The young warrior performed a half somersault so that the bottom of his armored boots came into contact with the wall before pushing himself towards the large form of Garek with the Force.

Garek quickly spread his legs several inches further apart and crossed both arms over his torso while ducking his head somewhat. The Force launched form of Solrac crashed against his older friend before locking his hands against Gareks' shoulders. Pulling himself towards his friend Solrac delivered an incredibly fast blow from both knees to Gareks' abdomen. The twenty-year old warriors' armor prevented the damage from causing internal bleeding as well as injuring several of his vital organs. Solrac quickly brought up one foot and braced it against the now dented area of iron-grey durasteel. Once again the younger warrior pushed off of his opponent before delivering a powerful kick to his opponents head.

Garek caught sight of the movement before it drew close enough to become unavoidable. With near Jedi-like reflexes he twisted his head to right bringing his jaw up as a sacrifice to the blow. The instant the green armored boot connected a loud cracking sound could be heard in the small armory as Garek felt his jaw break. Biting back a cry of pain the older Mandalorian held his left hand against the area of his jaw where the boot had connected. Solrac by that time had landed in a crouch with one knee resting against the floor while the other was raised and supported his left arm.

The younger Mandalorian felt a wave of guilt overcome his emotions as he watched one of his closest friends barely move with the pain _he _had been responsible for. His sharp mind told him that even with bacta packs the injury he had delivered to Garek would take three days to heal enough for him to speak. For the briefest of moments Solrac felt that perhaps he was the one in the wrong and that he should accept his friends offer of assistance, if for no other reason that prevent any more unnecessary pain on to Garek.

Garek brought his right arm up and had it aimed at the smaller green warrior. With a flick of the center of the gauntlet touching the wrist raised up and presented an increase in danger to the fight. Poison-darts, though they were watered down by Krista to the point that the dosage would only be fatal after four darts had pierced the skin. Anything less would merely stun and paralyze the target for anywhere between an hour and a full day depending on the amount of poison.

"You really don't want me to go alone do you?" Solrac asked sarcastically while tensing his muscles to dodge the first of the darts. Garek narrowed his eyes before he fired the first of a trio of darts aimed at the vulnerable areas of Solracs' body not protected by armor; the neck, and armpit areas. The younger warrior quickly rolled to the right as a dart whizzed past the air that had been filled by his head just a moment prior.

Perhaps he should have accepted his friend's offer of assistance after all.

Krista Raez liked to think that she was a fairly accepting young woman, the traditional Mandalorian woman. She liked to believe that her opinion was valued and her word carried some amount of weight with her friends. That the young woman was one of the most capable warriors for her age in the galaxy and also one of the most forgiving. Krista also liked to think that her companions were also more than a little respectful and understanding of the fact that their base belonged to _her_ and _her _family.

The condition of her precious and well maintained armory was proof to the contrary of the vast majority of her assumptions. The sapphire armored sixteen year old Mandalorian woman felt her grip on her helmet tighten as she surveyed what was _left _of her precious armory. Which aside from two walls was for a all intents and purposes a ruin if the collapsed pillars were any sign of condition.

Krista raised her right hand to the bridge of her nose before pinching it as her frustration rose new heights. Closing her viridian eyes the brunette let out a long and tired sigh escape from her tan lips. Shaking her head Krista took her first tentative steps into the formerly quite cleanly organized armory, unwilling to chance being trapped beneath even further collapse. The young woman stopped moving as she heard a loud coughing sound to her right and beneath parts of one of the collapses pillars.

The brunette calmly stepped towards the pillar before stopping a meter away from actually touching it. With a slight twitch of an eye brow the Mandalorian woman kicked the pillar off of one iron-grey clad Mandalorian whose hair was slightly burnt off, and looked to have a broken or dislocated jaw. A pair pale blue eyes widened in fear at the sight of a wickedly smiling Krista before their owner attempted to dig himself out of the rubble in an attempt at escape. The attempt ended before it had truly begun when Krista placed a single boot on Gareks' battered chest plate before leaning closer to the older mans face.

"My armory is totaled, some of the weapons are missing, there is still a small fire burning in the corner, and one Mandalorian trapped under a pillar," Krista said in a tense tone. "So Garek, would you please kindly explain to me. . . WHERE THE HELL IS SOLRAC STORIA!"

Krista Raez also liked to believe that few were the number who pissed of a female Mandalorian and went uninjured.

_**AN: I apologize for the length, but I felt that this was sufficient to stand on its own. In case ydk, I have a new fic on my page titled Dimensional Collapse Guardian, and its a Teen Titans cross with certain Star Wars character, Namely Solrac and DragonKnightRyu's Ryu Hisanage from his Soldier of the Jedi fic. Ryu will also pop in during this story as well though several years older than the other fic. **_


	5. Chapter 5

_The Escape _

Solrac felt a shiver run down his spine while he was quickly setting his chosen weapons into the small cargo hold of his personal starship. He had decided he would use the prototype DXR6 minus its electronic scope. The Force would tell him when the moment to fire the ending shot arrived. And if he was in the middle of a firefight he had equipped the weapon with a small tracking device that he had connected to his helmets HUD, and as such allowed his computer to calculate firing solutions.

Alongside the DX, Solrac had chosen to bring the _Bes'Kad _he had purchased from a Mandalorian blacksmith which had the same length as most fully extended lightsabers. The blade was not his only fall back weapon as well, even though he would take great pleasure in decapitating his target if the opportunity revealed itself. The single WESTAR-34 blaster pistol as well as several thermal detonators, and pair of ion grenades in the event Granta Omega was being accompanied by some battle droids, also accompanied it.

That would certainly be something that _chakaar _would keep around considering his goals. Not to mention that his methods for carrying out his operations were easily aided by a few dozen of an army of the things. The young man had heard about the terrorist attack on the Galactic Senate that occurred just a little under a week earlier. In total there were exactly forty five dead after the attack on the Senate; twenty one senators from multiple systems and twenty four members of the Senate Guard and senators aides.

As more information was revealed about the attack Solrac had been amazed at its effect. Nearly every single world still in the folds of the Galactic Republic was in a state of uproar. More worried about protecting their own planetary governments in the wake of the incident; Coruscant was supposed to have been the most secure world in the galaxy after all. The question of setting new and more effective security measures was fast becoming a popular topic in hundreds of different parliaments. Galactic security was not the only galaxy wide discussion either.

Many worlds also voiced their doubts as to the effectiveness of the Jedi Order in protecting the Republic with the aftermath of the deaths. He had discovered that the question regarding the peaceful guardians of the Republic was not new at all. In fact it was the failure of the Order's response to an earlier terrorist attack carried out by a Separatist radical group that first sparked these doubts. The Knights not only failed to prevent the terrorist attack, but also failed in their response to it as well.

The Battle of Antar 4 showed the galaxy that the Jedi Order was not the godlike organization many saw them as. Its members could make mistakes and lacked the ability to successfully fight against threats with a willingness to sacrifice their lives in order to obtain independence. The fact that the Order used a method that caused intense pain to the planets inhabitants in order to win only added to the questioning. In all honesty however, he assumed the galaxy should have come to the discovery after their Knights had been manipulated into destroying Mandalores' last standing military force.

It amazed him how utterly dependent on the Jedi Order the galaxy had become since his own time. The very thought of disbanding the military of the Galactic Republic may have been labeled as a form of treason for any citizen. Certainly the Jedi Order of his time was unable to protect the galaxy with their skill alone and without aid; such was evidenced by the recent sacking of Coruscant.

_Well_, he thought to himself, _recent to me. Damn it, I'm still not used to being three thousand in the future. Or is it present? Past? Hell, just thinking about this is giving me a headache. _

The simple idea of placing so much responsibility on, if the number of Knights had reached the levels before the Sith Emperor returned to the galaxy that is, perhaps at most several hundred thousand men and women was quite foolish. The Galactic Republic had stood for well over 20,000 years by his time and while the Jedi were a large reason for that, they could never have done so without millions of soldiers behind them. Though if he was honest with himself a thousand years of peace without a galactic war thanks to the Orders efforts was just as impressive. The Mandalorian tensed slightly as he felt Krista's annoyance through the Force.

Ignoring the feeling that he would suffer for his actions in Krista's armory, Solrac sealed up the cargo hold directly behind the cockpit of his ship. Satisfied that he was sufficiently armed for his personal mission the young warrior smirked. He then turned his head to the right and called out.

"Hey R3, move it or I'm leaving you!" in response to his shout a series of shrill whistles struck his ears. Cringing slightly at the sharp communications he counted down from five in his mind. As he reached the zero mark an astromech droid fell from its position on the larger transport shuttle in the hangar bay.

"R3, what am I going to do with you?" Solrac sighed in exasperation. He then shook his head as the little droid began a series of beeps and whistles that sounded slightly embarrassed. "I swear if you weren't such a good mechanic," began the young Mandalorian before trailing off. He held out his hand and with the Force he lifted the machine into the air before setting it down properly.

After a long thankful whistle R3-M4, a request made from the spirit of Revan, soon jetted itself into position on its masters starship. The astro droid was soon firmly locked in place between the cargo hold, and the rear defense gun that it controlled during combat. After fondly patting the machine on the head Solrac quickly jumped into the pilots' seat. Once firmly seated he placed his black and blue painted JT-12 jetpack in the space to the left of the pilot seat. The young warrior found that the compact device was more to his own style than other jetpacks he had found being marketed. It was even capable of launching a single guided missile if the could get a lock on from his HUD. That was why he had stored a single missile along with the other weapons just in case.

The Mandalorian youth soon began the process of inspecting his ships systems. He made it a point of never flying it unless he was satisfied with every single system itself. After confirming that all its weapons were functioning properly Solrac connected to the hangar bay computer. He punched in his authorization code and waited for the hangar bay of Krista's asteroid base to open up.

As he was waiting Solrac began to think on how he had acquired his current starship. During his time training as a Jedi he had done much research on the military of the Galactic Republic. He was particularly interested in the Aureck-class tactical starfighter, the highly effective and versatile fighter standard for the world of space combat.

The Aureck tactical fighter had been in use by the Republic Navy for well over 300 hundred years. In fact many planetary governments had taken the fighter for their own defense forces during its service as well. During his time researching the history between his birth time and the era he was currently in, Solrac had looked in on the Aureck. He was quite surprised when he had discovered that the starfighter had been in use for over 3,000 years by the time it had finally been retired.

The fact that during that entire time it had undergone relatively few changes was nothing short of astounding. Therefore Solrac had determined that he would bring the fighter back to the galaxy. Perhaps it was the simple desire to have something that was familiar to him; it did not change the fact that the young man was determined to make it a reality. He did not need to worry about cost at all however.

Soon after escaping the world of Kamino the young Mandalorian had checked his bank accounts on several worlds. To his great fortune he found that all of the accounts were entirely untouched and he had readily taken stock of his fortune. The word shock would have been too weak to describe what he first felt upon looking at the amount of money. It had taken the young man nearly a full minute before he had processed the fact that in total he had nearly fifteen billion credits. He knew he shouldn't have been surprised, after all a tenth of a million credits with 3,000 years worth of interest was expected to be high. Solrac simply hadn't registered that until it was in his face.

He had taken out several hundred million credits for himself and made contact with the Incom Corporation. After sending the schematics for the Aureck starfighter he made a request for a slightly larger more modern variation. After transferring a third of the credits he had taken out to their research division the company instantly agreed. Three months later Solrac received a message from Incom informing him of several changes in his request, and asked for him to test the prototype for them.

Solrac may not have been a very humble person but he did know his skills and the limits they had. The Mandalorian preferred to believe that he was a slightly above average pilot, but he knew he was light years from being called one of the greatest in the galaxy. Still he did know how to tell a good starfighter, and an excellent one. As such he was impressed with the modernized Aureck fighter that Incom Corporation had designed for his own personal use.

There were few major exterior changes to the fighter which had set the galactic standard for over three millennia before being retired. It had a slightly sleeker design, the cockpit had been moved half a meter back, its frame was made of superior parts and offered better protection. The overall dimensions of the craft seemed to have increased all around. Lengthwise it was about twelve meters and had a wingspan half that when the variable geometry wings were fully extended. The pilot seat reclined to give the pilot a more comfortable position during combat while the control panels were to the sides of the seat. This design allowed for a less confusing detection and navigation console to be placed facing the pilot.

Aside from that, and the prototype grey color, it had barely any additional changes to the basic design. Actually just days after receiving the ship he had repainted the craft with his green and orange colors along with a golden Lagartoz War Dragon stretched across the front of the craft. The War Dragons had at one time been an intelligent sentient race conquered by the Mandalorians several centuries before his time. Though when he was born they had not all fully degenerated into the mindless war mounts that served his people thousands of years later. The now extinct creature was laid out with the tail stretching from the craft of the nose until the wings grazed the cockpit and a challenging look from the face. After that it had truly became his own personal craft, and that was before he fully knew of its features.

It was what lay hidden beneath the outside exterior that its differences were shown in full. The newly made starfighter was designed to carry several prototype features that Incom Corporations decided to test out, and chose not to inform him of their decision all the while. Three in particular had actually caught his attention.

First and foremost had been the prototype interior variable frame of the craft. This prototype technology was connected to the entire cockpit system. Once the Aureck had landed on a planet with suitable electromagnetic fields its cockpit could be jettisoned from the main body. Once jettisoned the variable frame would be revealed for all to see. The frame was actually based on a modified swoop bike that had been designed to be carried _inside _the fighter itself. The pilot could also activate a command that would transform the frame from an armored bike into a small short ranged airspeeder. The frame carried a trio of light laser cannons beneath its nose while in its secondary form.

The prototype frame was also designed of a material that was supposedly undetectable by any type of scanner and should thereby keep the variable frame a secret. This would provide the pilot with a suitable form of land transportation meant for infiltration and special operations that had air capability, allowing its pilot to return and rejoin with the mainframe for a quick withdrawal in the event of being discovered prematurely. There was a pair of small lock-in bio-electric sensor stations where the pilot would have control of the variable frame, which was the same way the main frame was flown. Its only design flaws were that it did not carry all of the main frames' advanced systems and the reaction time was milliseconds over a second slower than when connected to the main frame.

Bolstering its usefulness for stealthy operations, it also carried a prototype stealth generator found inside a sealed container found several inches behind a metallic sheet separating the devices connecting the inner and main frames while in space. It could cloak the craft from any form of detection for nearly an hour. The cons to this prototype were far worse than those of the inner frames' however. Its hour long stealth systems could only be maintained for that length while the craft was unmoving only. This was somewhat countered by its use while the inner frame was removed from the main though; it offered the pilot an amount of time to make a quick recon without worry of the craft being discovered. Its other con was that if used while the Aureck was in actual use, the generator heavily taxed the energy of all systems and increased the cockpit temperature several hundred degrees. For the most part any pilot would only be able to keep the system active for several minutes before the heat killed them, or destroyed the engines.

Its final feature was slightly less remarkable than the others; an escape or orbital drop function. The pilot seat would recline further until it was a full 180 degrees before turning on its back. Then it would be lowered half a meter and the pilot would be sealed off in the rear portion of the variable frame. After that was done the pod was then ejected from main frame to be dropped to a planet if it was being pursued, though the ship would still be fully functional and piloted by a droid. The pod's armor gave it a fair chance of having the pilot survive the reentry process with only mild injuries that should have been easily treatable. In addition to that the main frame could be pre-programmed to fly under the droid's control for several minutes before being destroyed to prevent capture if not received by a mothership.

The Aureck also fielded an impressive array of weaponry even to a Mandalorian. Armed with a duo of medium laser cannons mounted on the wingtips, a single rear mounted light laser, a trio of proton torpedoes in the launch bay, and one heavy laser cannon mounted on the underbelly. He had found out that as the pilot he would only be in control of the wingtip weapons and the heavy laser, while a droid would control the rear laser and torpedoes. As long as he would chose the droid Solrac had no problem with needing one.

The young man was shaken out of his thoughts as he felt the magnetic clamps of the hangar bay release their hold on his ship. After activating all systems he began inputting the coordinates he would need to make the jump to Korriban. The young warrior's personal starfighter slowly lifted off before R3 took control redirected it to face the now visible mass of stars outside the hangar bay.

"R3, the moment we're out of here take us to Korriban. Copy?" asked Solrac. His little droid gave an affirmative whistle in response as the craft flew out of the asteroid at top speed. "Good. I just hope Krista and Garek understand exactly why and what I did to the transport. Actually. . . It would probably better to hope Krista simply doesn't kill me."

_And I really hope she decides not to scrap this bird. I still need to give it a name before losing it. _

Suddenly his new fighter's comm unit came to life. Surprised, the young warrior tilted his head to face the small device when a familiar voice began speaking. _A voice_, he continued silently, _that suddenly makes me feel very, _very_, afraid. _

"_SOLRAC! Would you kindly explain to me, exactly why you decided to virtually ruin _my_ armory in a fight with Garek?" _asked the feminine voice.

"I have to go to Korriban 'Ista, and besides he started it," Solrac answered her while using his own nickname for the woman.

"_Don't you 'Ista' me, and don't you dare _jehaat bah ni _you lousy excuse for a _burc'ya!_" _shouted the obviously irate young woman.

"Friends would follow each others wishes," argued Solrac.

"_Solrac, as big an idiot Garek is, I know what he told you. And he was right, we are your friends. We want to help you. Now are you going to let us help you, or not?" _Krista said after a moments pause to organize her thoughts.

"_Ne, ne katr'to. _Goodbye Krista. Oh, and Garek, hope I didn't do anything too permanent." said Solrac as R3 activated the starfighter's hyperdrive and they disappeared.

Krista Raez angrily banged on the durasteel four foot deep door that barred entrance to the hangar. The young woman occupied her time between cursing at Solrac, throwing glares filled with a promise of painful retribution at Garek, and devising plans for revenge. The thought of finding a Sarlacc and then feeding it the two of them was a particular possibility that she found positively soothing.

Behind her the battered form of Garek placed his, still armored, back against the wall to her right. The only part of his armor that was not damaged in the confrontation between him and Solrac was his helmet and that only because he had left it in the communications room of the base. The burned and scratched grey armor made a screeching sound as he slowly slid to the floor, his groans muffled. The older Mandalorian male now had the entire lower portion of his face wrapped by several bacta strips to increase the recovery of the bones in his jaw. The black haired man gently felt, with his unbroken hand, across his shattered jaw and winced as the fingers struck a sensitive spot through the wraps. With a moan of disappointment rested his uncovered forehead against the cool metal of his own helmet which rested on his raised left knee.

_On that note, _the fuming woman thought while slowly calming down, _maybe he did me a favor. Now I don't have to hear Garek and his perverted wordplay for a day at least. And all it cost was the damage to my armory. . . Right. That was not worth any benefit, and he _will suffer _for it. _Eventually she began to hack into _her_ own security systems simply to enter _her _base's hangar bay.

As the locking mechanisms were released she promised herself untold amounts of pain to reward the one responsible. Stepping to her full height of 5'5 the young woman swiftly pulled up her injured companion. Not caring that the action caused any amount of pain she shoved him forward. After righting himself and avoiding a fall Garek slowly led the pair into the hangar, warily glancing at the unobstructed glare of viridian eyes. The twenty year old wished that she had decided to wear her helmet instead of leaving it attached to her belt. Then at least he would only _feel _the anger from her stare and not see _and _feel it.

Still, despite the intensity of the glare, a part of the man enjoyed having the attractive brunette watching him. Beneath the bacta soaked wraps his lips formed a smile and his eyes closed at the thought. He was quickly brought back to reality a moment later.

"Garek, for your sakes I hope you aren't thinking about certain things," Krista said coolly and shocking the man. As though having known that was exactly what was going through his mind, she shook her head in some disbelief as their footsteps echoed throughout the large hangar. "After all you're already on thin ice for going after Solrac alone. What were you thinking man? Considering what Omega did to him, I guarantee he assumed you would have supported whatever it is that he had planned. Did you really think he would react in a positive way when you went to stop? We agreed to go talk to him together, and then convince him to let us go! I mean, honestly what possessed you to do something so st-," Her words were cut off as Garek stopped and his body became rigid.

Stepping around the taller man she stopped several feet in front of him. Her viridian eyes narrowed at what she saw directly before her. Or rather what was _left _in place before her. Krista felt her left eye twitch slightly as her mind processed what she was seeing. Once that was done she felt like falling to her knees and screaming at the top of her lungs. Being the type of woman that she was however the act was quickly prevented.

Garek made a nervous gulp of air behind her before the sound of an armored boot stepping back was heard. Turning swiftly the now fully livid woman faced him with a frightening expression across her face. Her shoulder length hair looked wild as she came to a halt before having closed the distance between them. With the shortened distance Garek felt more scared than excited at how close the woman was; a rarity for him. Both of her arms launched up to grab at the exposed portion of his chest plate just below his wrapped up jaw.

"THIS IS YOUR FAULT AS MUCH AS HIS GAREK!" Krista shouted at him as she started shaking the taller man. Releasing him she started pacing back and forth between the man and the cause of her unleashed anger. Turning to face him again she soon began another tirade before looking back over her shoulder.

"Forget the Sarlacc, that is way too gentle for him," she began to speak to herself more than to him. "Days alive inside that thing's gullet as it digests him slowly? No, no, no, no the part where he still is alive would be wrong with that. What I should really do is find a live Mythosaur somewhere on Mandalore and introduce them. Yes, yes, that would be a lovely idea wouldn't it?"

As the woman began to rant as various ways to kill Solrac crossed her mind Garek wisely stayed silent. His gaze went to the large object behind her and he winced as he imagined the price his younger friend would pay for what he had done. As he half-heartedly listened to what Krista was saying Garek felt that he had gotten off easy with the minor injuries he had received while trying to stop Solrac.

The cause for Krista's anger and tirade of painful retribution was a wreck. The prototype armed transport ship she had bought for her own personal use was gutted inside and out. Looking to the other end of the hangar he noticed that Solrac's personal starfighter was no where to be seen. The droid that accompanied the craft was also missing from the scenery. That meant that his young friend had already left and disabled the only means for him and Krista to follow with. Shaking his head the oldest of the trio of young Mandalorian warriors wondered whether or not Krista would find a way to meet him at Korriban before he found Omega alone.

Suddenly he felt a tug on his shoulder and was pulled back. He quickly regained the balance the pull had taken and turned backwards. He was greeted by the now helmeted form of Krista in her pale shade of blue armor. Certain parts of her armor also included her own small additions of green trimming as well as the black visor.

One of her arms removed his own helmet from his hands and then shoved it in his face. The for-the-moment mute Mandalorian lowered his head and released a low resigned sigh. Tilting his head level with the helmet Garek reached up and took it away from blue gloves. Turning the gray helmet so that he was peering inside it, the man raised it above his head before gingerly lowering it. Once placed over his head his hands went to work sealing the entire armor.

Garek felt a slight discomfort as the inside of his helmet lightly pressed against the bacta wrappings and placed a small amount of pressure over his broken jaw. The discomfort lasted only seconds as the pain was extremely easy for him to manage through. The taller Mandalorian then crossed his forearms in an X across his chest plate and then lazily stare at the smaller woman standing in front of him, whom had her hands resting against her hips, despite the growing sense of impending pain he sensed.

He soon saw that his outer attempt to project an air of indifference was a snort. Shaking her head Krista soon held out her left forearm a good half foot away from her covered face. The hand of her opposite arm soon moved up until it was above the gauntlet which protected everything between her elbow and wrist. A single finger lightly tapped against the top of a point on the gauntlet before moving away.

Garek watched on fully interested as a small portion of the gauntlet flipped over to reveal a small computer. The fingers of Krista's opposing arm soon began lightly tapping the computer in some kind of sequence. Curiosity growing, the older of the pair remained silent as the young woman continued her work. Without warning Krista's fingers stopped their movements save for one final tap on the computer. After doing so the computer flipped again and disappeared into the gauntlet itself.

"If Solrac is still alive by the time we reach Korriban," began Krista as she moved several meters to her left and the floor beneath her previous position opened. "He is never, _tatugir draar, _going untracked inside my asteroid again."

Garek looked on in surprise as a single thought came to the forefront of his mind. _Solrac, you are going to suffer so much _vod.

Mando'a Words

jehaat bah ni = lie to me

burc'ya = friend

Ne, ne katr'toNo, No I'm not

AN: I have decided to go silent on this sight for a few more days, possibly as long as two weeks. Why? Because I have decided to update each and everyone of my active stories over the course of Spring Break at least twice each. And to do that I'm going to have to really write hard until my Spring Break starts in a little over two weeks. Well, thats that. Oh, and if anyone is interested on Solracs' new starfighter, try this. You guys remember the fighter Anakin used during the Clone Wars mini-series on cartoon network a few years back? That customized Jedi Starfighter? Yeah now picture the Aureck Starfighter, the very same we see Republic Forces use in the KoToR series of games and comics. Now combine those two, change the color scheme to what I described, and add some small features from the ARC-170 starfighter used later on in the Clone Wars. Do all that and you get what I picture his new fighter too look like.

BTW, could I get ideas on what to name it? I'm leaning more towards the name being,_ War Dragon Reborn,_ but I wanna hear some suggestions. As usual, PM me suggestions or leave 'em in your reviews.

PS: Got no clue at all if any of you guys no about him, but I recently found a really great Author on this sight who is inspiring me to be more active and quit being a lazy cow. The author in question is Kenchi618 and he specializes in Naruto fictions/crossovers. They are funny, well written, clearly thought out, and above all updated on a regular basis. Sometimes all of them are updated together with maybe a day or two seperating a new update for one of his fics. If you do start reading his AN's for some of his stories you'll know what he does away from writing. And once you do, you will develop a healthy respect for the guy.

SpartanCommando, Out.


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